Page 62 of Worth Risking It

Chapter 24

Wyatt Shaw

It was an A-framed house made of logs with a small, uncovered front porch that overlooked the Upper Platte River twenty-five yards away. At the end of a twelve mile road that was only accessible with a vehicle that had four by four, it was surrounded by tall, thick trees everywhere the eye could see.

The downstairs was one, large, open space that had two, tan love seats to the left that faced the stone fireplace, a small, round table at the front to the right, and a small kitchen at the back. Past the hearth was a staircase that led to the lofted bedroom that overlooked the main floor, the ceiling pitched in the center with an octagon shaped mirror behind the headboard.

Downstairs, beyond the kitchen, under the bedroom, was a full but cramped bathroom on one side and a large storage and laundry room combination on the other.

Everything was wood; floors, walls, ceilings. The appliances were outdated and mismatched, the counters laminated. The wall with the entrance had a large window behind the table, the entrance actually a double sliding glass door. Above each were huge, triangle windows to give unobstructed views of the woods and river even from the bed. All in all, the entire home was barely more than five hundred square feet, but was so private, it wasn’t even visible by air, for the branches of the trees canopied over and concealed it completely.

“Wyatt!” Amanda whined from upstairs.

Groaning, I plopped on one of the sofas, threw my arm across the back, and propped a heel on the coffee table. Tilting my head, I looked up at the banister at her angry face leaning over to sneer.

“What the hell is this?”

“Your new home for the next few months.”

“This is bullshit!” she whined, bounding down the stairs.

“What? What is so wrong with this place, your highness?”

Her hand on the banister, she stopped at the bottom step to ogle me as if I should already know what the problem was. Sighing, I averted my gaze to swing the keychain around my finger. I was tired and stressed, and just wanted to go home. It had been over a week since I left. I wanted to sleep in my own bed.

“My bedroom is bigger than this whole house.”

Scoffing, I rolled my eyes and shook my head, turning my attention out the window. “And now your husband wants to kill you. Suck it up and deal with it.”

She deflated and crept toward the other sofa, sitting down in the corner and pulling her legs to her chest. “I don’t know if I can do this, Wyatt,” she whispered, her eyes full of fear.

I quickly looked away again, unable to hold her needy stare. I wasn’t unsympathetic to her plight, but there really was no other answer to save the baby.

“You don’t have a choice.”

“There’s no one here. I’ve never been alone. Never!” she shrieked, shaking. “I’ve been with Jack since I was sixteen years old. I’ve never, in my entire life, spent a whole night by myself. And there’s no one out here. I’m…I’m so scared.”

I groaned and threw my head backward to stare at the thick beam going across the length of the house above me. “I’ll stay here tonight, but I gotta hit the road in the morning. I gotta get back to Milo.”

We fell silent, both of us looking outside at the light snowfall adding to the two feet already on the ground. Replaying her words in my mind, my lids narrowed, my head slowly turning to face her. “You don’t know how to take care of yourself, do you?”

Her lids rounded and her frame stiffened. Folding her legs beneath her, she rolled a shoulder, fidgeting with a button on her blouse. “I mean, I can cook and clean and do all that domestic stuff.”

“Can you start a fire?”

Her complexion blanched, her focus darting to the hearth. “No.”

“Son of a…” I sat up, my elbows on my knees, my fingers rubbing my temples. “Okay, first things first.” I stood and clapped my hands, motioning her to her feet. “We gotta change your hair.”

Taken aback, she smoothed a palm over her black locks. “What? Why?”

“So, no one can recognize you.”

“There’s no one here!” she whimpered, spreading her arms to her sides.

“You still have to go to the doctors once in a while, you will be in town every now and then.”

I wove through the furniture to the bathroom behind the kitchen. Flipping on the lights, I opened the cabinet under the sink and pulled out a bag of hair products, handing them to her.